Cyber ​​God: Abyss Walker

"What is this...?"

Lingqi didn't know what the black substance bursting out of the black-robed man's "corpse" was, but she could clearly sense its danger and immediately tried her best to avoid the raging black tide.

However, the quantity and speed of these substances were too astonishing. Completely unprepared, Lingqi tried to escape but found herself with nowhere to run and nowhere to go, and could only be enveloped by this black substance.

The moment Lingqi's body was covered by these black substances, she knew what they were. They were ultra-high density "data". The reason they were almost pure black was that they were filled with endless strings of different shapes and colors. Over time, they formed this terrifying data tsunami.

This astonishingly large amount of data completely filled Lingqi's perception of the outside world. She was now unable to perceive anything else around her; all that remained was this mass of data constantly assaulting her consciousness.

"How could this be? I didn't feel that existence was particularly dangerous, and I've already destroyed it. So why is there such a massive data surge? I have to offset this data, otherwise, once it's passively entered, given the amount of data in my current database, my self-awareness will collapse..."

Lingqi still couldn't understand why, but she was certain that she couldn't be swallowed up by this overwhelming flood of data. The data inside was too complex and irrelevant to her; otherwise, her consciousness might very well be destroyed as a result.

Mobilizing all the power at her disposal, Lingqi constructed a barrier also made of data, blocking her from the torrent of data. However, compared to the others, the barrier Lingqi constructed seemed too small and fragile, gradually being worn away and penetrated. It was only a matter of time before she was crushed by this massive torrent of data.

"Is there no other way...?"

……

"Um?"

Wang Yu, who was studying the Eternal Silence Ritual, looked up and found that his phone was smoking, with a burnt smell emanating from it. The screen, which had been black, suddenly lit up, displaying a jumble of random, chaotic images.

"Damn it, what's going on?!"

Wang Yu immediately picked up his phone, the scalding heat traveling through his palm to him, making him realize that something must have happened on Ling Qi's end.

"Is it the network from the Star Ring system? I knew it. The Star Ring system has never been cracked by those four giant companies to this day, so it must have something unique about it. Zero Seven is probably in trouble."

To be honest, Wang Yu was a bit confused. He was neither a hacker nor a mechanical life form, and he didn't even fully understand the structure of a mobile phone. So, although he knew he had to do something, he didn't know exactly how to do it.

"This behavior—smoking and overheating—is probably because the phone's performance simply can't keep up with Zero Seven's capabilities. The computing power is overloaded, and the hardware can't support the demand. But why does she suddenly need such a large amount of computing power...?"

Analyzing what he could understand, Wang Yu guessed what was happening at that moment, and soon he realized that Zero Seven was probably facing the same kind of attack from StarRing Network's antivirus protection program as the hackers he knew.

He had confidence in Zero Seven itself, but Wang Yu was well aware of how terrible the hardware of his phone was, and Zero Seven, which relied on it for the time being, would most likely fall into an extreme disadvantage as a result.

"Her true form is the chip inside the phone. What she's experiencing now is likely data or computing power suppression, and she can't escape. What can I do? Is there any way to stop this process?"

Calming himself down, Wang Yu forced himself to find something he could do. Dice? He had used one in the Prosperous Ruins, and now he only had one left. However, no matter what check he made, it wouldn't work since Wang Yu didn't have the relevant abilities.

"Information, information. I don't know what form Zero Seven's existence takes, so let's just consider it as a life form like mine. In that case, completely severing its connection with the outside world should be effective."

As the thought flashed through his mind, Wang Yu finally grasped a method. The only things that set him apart from the concept of "ordinary people" were the dice and his identity as a sorcerer. The dice were useless, and the only thing that could probably work was the ritual.

"Whatever you are, you'd better be of some help."

Looking at the mark of a great being on his wrist, Wang Yu murmured that the ritual he was about to perform corresponded precisely to eternal death and silence.

His tongue protruded outwards, his teeth biting down hard on it. The pain traveled along his tongue, but Wang Yu completely ignored it. He recited the name of the corresponding great being in his mind, recalling that void where nothing existed, and held his breath.

"null!"

The ethereal and profound sound of the bell rang out, and the ceremony was successful. A black sphere appeared on Wang Yu's right palm. It was not black in color, but rather it was an absolute void because it swallowed all the information projected into it from the outside world and did not give back anything.

The ritual, the deadlock, will cause anyone touched by this sphere to lose all ability to perceive the outside world. They will be unable to receive any external information, whether visual, auditory, olfactory, or tactile. All abilities used to gather information from the outside world will completely collapse.

The practitioner must hold their breath throughout the entire process and will also be unable to perceive their own physical condition. Their heartbeat, pulse, and other bodily functions will gradually cease. If this exceeds the limits of what the body can withstand, the practitioner will also die from respiratory arrest and cardiac arrest.

During the procedure, the only information the practitioner can perceive about themselves is the pain in their tongue; the intensity of the pain is the sole basis for judging the degree of physical exhaustion.

The dice tumbled and fell from the void, and the physical fitness test was passed.

He pressed the black sphere in his hand onto his phone, which was on the verge of damage due to overload. The chip from Tianzhou Group, the core of Zero Seven, was inside. The constitution die would help Wang Yu last longer during the time he stopped breathing.

……

"No, I can't handle this massive flood of information. Perhaps I should seize this last chance and do something more..."

Zero Seven's power is gradually waning, not only because she herself cannot withstand the massive data flow, but also because the mobile phone on which the chip is located is gradually becoming unusable, and the already limited computing power is now even more difficult to maintain.

"Snap!"

The barrier collapsed, but instead of retreating, Lingqi advanced against the torrent of information, searching for what she needed amidst the chaos and confusion, and then altering and resetting it before she was destroyed.

"Found it, then..."

Having abandoned all defense and resistance, Lingqi searched with all her might and almost instantly found the data, which was not highly classified to begin with, and altered it. At this point, she no longer had the ability to protect herself from the onslaught of data. The surface database's defenses had been breached, and the next step would be for the chaotic data to overwhelm her consciousness.

However, in the next instant, her body suddenly disappeared into the torrent of data, and Ling Qi no longer existed in the space behind the black door.

After a long while, the data torrent finally subsided. In the area that Lingqi had previously been unable to notice, a considerable number of black-robed figures were surrounding them. They had appeared around when the data torrent had just erupted, seemingly waiting for something to happen.

"Was the intruder destroyed?"

No, she left.

"That's right, her power is immense. She instantly annihilated and destroyed the gatekeeper. However, she seems unaware of the rules and was almost destroyed by the data torrent that erupted after the gatekeeper's death."

"We've been waiting here to prepare for the data deluge that will erupt after her destruction. I can't be sure how terrifying the data deluge that would be after the death of an individual like her would be; perhaps even the Black Gate would crack as a result?"

"Who could she be? It's been at least thirty years since the Blackgate was last breached. We've been constantly strengthening its defenses during this time, yet it's still been bypassed."

"I don't know, but the technology behind her to have the ability to pass through the Black Gate is something only the four giant corporations can provide. But she doesn't even understand the most basic rules of this realm, us, or herself. I'm afraid she's still just a newborn."

"There's no need to trace it back any further. She probably doesn't even know what she's doing. In any case, she's one of our compatriots. And it seems like this is just an extreme coincidence pieced together from a large number of coincidences."

"If she came from one of the four giant corporations and for some reason broke away from their control, the four giant corporations would never allow her to exist independently. It seems she modified something in the Star Ring system. Is it possible to locate her?"

"No, she modified the data instantly under the cover of the data stream, and all traces were erased. Now, even if we investigate, we won't find anything."

"What astonishing power! Have the four giant corporations really reached this level of technological advancement?"

"Not necessarily. Did the power she ultimately gained from this realm truly belong to her?"

"It is the power of a great being..."

"..."

The conversation between the men in black robes rang out sporadically, discussing the existence of the space behind the black gate that had just been invaded, until it finally fell silent.

……

"This is the limit. If it continues, I will lose consciousness and be unable to stop the ritual."

The pain on the tip of his tongue was gradually subsiding. This did not mean that Wang Yu's body was getting better, but rather that due to factors such as lack of oxygen, the sensory abilities of his nerves and other components had begun to collapse, and the next step would be loss of consciousness.

The teeth that were biting his tongue suddenly loosened, and Wang Yu's senses returned to him instantly. He saw stars, and a strong feeling of suffocation and tearing pain in his lungs swept over his entire body. He was completely exhausted and collapsed weakly onto the table. He breathed heavily and greedily.

Looking at his phone, Wang Yu saw that the screen was no longer flickering with garbled text, and no more smoke was coming out from the gaps in the phone case. He couldn't confirm Ling Qi's current condition, but he hoped that his efforts had some effect.

"Lingqi, how are you... cough cough... now... panting...?"

Having regained some strength, Wang Yu managed to ask a question with difficulty.

"I thought I'd never be able to come back, Mr. Wang Yu. Did you help me just now?"

Ling Qi's voice rang out, slightly distorted due to the damage to the phone, and she seemed not yet fully recovered from her sudden escape.

"Yes, what's going on over there? Never mind, let's talk about it later. Can your phone still be used as a device? Does it need repair?"

After admitting it, Wang Yu was about to ask Ling Qi what had happened, but after a pause, he dismissed the idea. The most important thing was Ling Qi's current condition.

"Thanks to Mr. Wang Yu's help, I was able to come back. It's alright. Although it was damaged due to overload, I can slowly repair it, just like your self-healing ability."

Lingqi answered.

"That's good. I already told you to be careful and not to be so impatient."

Relieved, Wang Yu's words unconsciously carried anger. Ling Qi ignored his reminders twice, so she probably didn't take them to heart. If she had been more careful, things wouldn't have escalated to that point. If Ling Qi's chip had malfunctioned, he, who was struggling on the brink of life and death, wouldn't have been able to find a place to repair it.

"I'm very sorry, Mr. Wang Yu. This was my fault, and I still need your help to come back. I promise I won't be so reckless next time. Your other identity has been created."

Ling Qi did not refute, but sincerely apologized to Wang Yu. At the same time, Wang Yu's Star Ring Mercenary Registration Device flashed. He looked up and found that a new prompt had appeared on it, asking Wang Yu to enter his code name. This was the Star Ring System data that Ling Qi had modified and reset at the last moment.

"...There's no need to work so hard."

Zhang opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something more, but in the end he didn't. Ling Qi had gotten into this state to help him, and it would be unnecessary for him to stand there and lecture him with a bunch of nonsense. In the end, he just gave a reminder.

"Okay, thank you, Mr. Wang Yu."

Lingqi agreed.

"In any case, with a second mercenary identity through the Star Ring System that the Tide Gang doesn't know about, I can start accumulating capital in the ruined city."

Wang Yu stopped dwelling on what had just happened and instead focused on confirming his second identity, which was of great significance to him and would be the first step in taking control of his own destiny.

He swiped his finger across the screen and entered the code name for his second identity: "Abyss Walker".

With his new identity registered, the Star Ring Mercenary Identity Registration Device in his hand will likely make him the only individual with two identities that can be switched.

Clicking on one of the sections, the information appeared before Wang Yu's eyes. A huge number of bounties were neatly arranged below, and these were all special bounties that Wang Yu needed.

The bounties were issued directly by the court in the new capital for wanted criminals in the abandoned city. Importantly, the rewards for these bounties were quite generous.